Right Now With Perry Bacon

There’s a lot of commentary that Democrats are declining with the “working class.” Those analyses are usually grounded in declining Democratic support among voters without four-year degrees, particularly whites. But in the latest edition of Right Now, TNR’s Monica Potts explains why working class and college-educated should not be treated as synonyms. Many fairly well-off Americans, particularly those living in rural areas and over 65, don’t have degrees. And some with degrees, particularly in urban areas, struggle to afford basic necessities. Potts argues that the Democrats lost in 2024 largely because of worldwide anti-incumbent sentiment. The path back for Democrats, she argues, isn’t by fixating on the working class or any other bloc of the electorate. Instead, the key is the party finding a few issues to be “loud” about, ensuring those themes reach occasional voters and people who don’t pay much attention to politics.

There’s a lot of commentary that Democrats are declining with the “working class.” Those analyses are usually grounded in declining Democratic support among voters without four-year degrees, particularly whites. But in the latest edition of Right Now, TNR’s Monica Potts explains why working class and college-educated should not be treated as synonyms. Many fairly well-off Americans, particularly those living in rural areas and over 65, don’t have degrees. And some with degrees, particularly in urban areas, struggle to afford basic necessities. Potts argues that the Democrats lost in 2024 largely because of worldwide anti-incumbent sentiment. The path back for Democrats, she argues, isn’t by fixating on the working class or any other bloc of the electorate. Instead, the key is the party finding a few issues to be “loud” about, ensuring those themes reach occasional voters and people who don’t pay much attention to politics.

Democrats are increasingly discussing affordability and blaming high costs of goods on President Trump. But Brian Beutler and Will Stancil, two liberal political commentators, say the Democrats shouldn’t be too confident about this messaging. In the latest episode of Right Now, they argue that affordability is a slippery concept. It’s not clear, in their view, exactly what Americans think costs too much or how Democrats would bring down those prices if they were in charge. Beutler and Stancil argue that Democrats are surging politically not because of high costs alone but because of a broader backlash to Trump. Democrats should move away from an economic-centric perspective and spend more time studying the cultural, social, and media factors affecting American politics, they say.

Democrats are increasingly discussing affordability and blaming high costs of goods on President Trump. But Brian Beutler and Will Stancil, two liberal political commentators, say the Democrats shouldn’t be too confident about this messaging. In the latest episode of Right Now, they argue that affordability is a slippery concept. It’s not clear, in their view, exactly what Americans think costs too much or how Democrats would bring down those prices if they were in charge. Beutler and Stancil argue that Democrats are surging politically not because of high costs alone but because of a broader backlash to Trump. Democrats should move away from an economic-centric perspective and spend more time studying the cultural, social, and media factors affecting American politics, they say.

President Trump started the year having won the popular vote for the first time, made significant gains with voters of color and consolidated the support of Republicans on Capitol Hill, on the federal judiciary, and in statehouses. Democrats were divided between a base that wanted a second resistance and a party leadership that was chastened by Trump’s victory and felt the need to try to work with him. Things look much different at the end of 2025. Trump’s poll numbers are dismal. He’s lost ground among the blocs who shifted to him in 2024. Even Republicans on Capitol Hill are increasingly breaking with him. Meanwhile, the Democratic establishment realized the base was right and started more sharply opposing the president, uniting the party. Democratic candidates won resoundingly in November elections across the country. The party has a message, affordability, that emerged from the Democrats’ new star, New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani. In the latest edition of Right Now, TNR”s Grace Segers discusses how the parties’ trajectories changed in 2025 and what that means for 2026 and beyond.

President Trump started the year having won the popular vote for the first time, made significant gains with voters of color and consolidated the support of Republicans on Capitol Hill, on the federal judiciary, and in statehouses. Democrats were divided between a base that wanted a second resistance and a party leadership that was chastened by Trump’s victory and felt the need to try to work with him. Things look much different at the end of 2025. Trump’s poll numbers are dismal. He’s lost ground among the blocs who shifted to him in 2024. Even Republicans on Capitol Hill are increasingly breaking with him. Meanwhile, the Democratic establishment realized the base was right and started more sharply opposing the president, uniting the party. Democratic candidates won resoundingly in November elections across the country. The party has a message, affordability, that emerged from the Democrats’ new star, New York mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani. In the latest edition of Right Now, TNR”s Grace Segers discusses how the parties’ trajectories changed in 2025 and what that means for 2026 and beyond.

With President Trump’s deep unpopularity and the traditional backlash against the president’s party, Republicans seem destined to lose the House. So last summer, Trump started insisting that state-level Republicans further gerrymander their states’ congressional districts to protect the GOP House majority as much as possible. This was a huge break with precedent, since congressional districts are normally drawn every 10 years. Most states just redrew their districts in 2021. Texas, under huge pressure from Trump, made the first move. Now Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio are among the Republican states that have redrawn districts in ways that would hurt Democrats. To fight back, Democratic leaders in California and Virginia are now poised to redraw their maps. It seemed for a while that Indiana would not redraw its lines. The state’s legislature is overwhelmingly Republican, but at first many in the GOP balked. But under intense pressure from Trump, Indiana House Republicans last week adopted a map that would likely result in nine Republican U.S. House seats and zero for Democrats, compared to the state’s current 7–2 mix. Andrea Huntley, the assistant minority leader of Indiana Senate Democrats, says there is still a chance that enough Republicans in her chamber balk that the redistricting doesn’t pass. But it would require a big bloc of Republicans to break with Trump, since 40 of the chamber’s 50 members are Republicans.

With President Trump’s deep unpopularity and the traditional backlash against the president’s party, Republicans seem destined to lose the House. So last summer, Trump started insisting that state-level Republicans further gerrymander their states’ congressional districts to protect the GOP House majority as much as possible. This was a huge break with precedent, since congressional districts are normally drawn every 10 years. Most states just redrew their districts in 2021. Texas, under huge pressure from Trump, made the first move. Now Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio are among the Republican states that have redrawn districts in ways that would hurt Democrats. To fight back, Democratic leaders in California and Virginia are now poised to redraw their maps. It seemed for a while that Indiana would not redraw its lines. The state’s legislature is overwhelmingly Republican, but at first many in the GOP balked. But under intense pressure from Trump, Indiana House Republicans last week adopted a map that would likely result in nine Republican U.S. House seats and zero for Democrats, compared to the state’s current 7–2 mix. Andrea Huntley, the assistant minority leader of Indiana Senate Democrats, says there is still a chance that enough Republicans in her chamber balk that the redistricting doesn’t pass. But it would require a big bloc of Republicans to break with Trump, since 40 of the chamber’s 50 members are Republicans.